1. The AMERICAS

2. American Civilizations
Enormous land area, many different regions
First Americans are believed to have crossed a land bridge in the Bering Strait between the Asian and North American continents during the last Ice Age when the sea level was low

3. North America The Inuit – lived in the Arctic regions and northwest
Built igloos = houses made of ice blocks, became skilled hunters and fishers
Other types of peoples include the Aleut and the Ingalik
The Mound Builders – eastern woodlands
Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, lived in the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys
Built earth mounds as homes and built some of the earliest cities in North America
One early group of mound builders was called the Hopewell peoples. Another group was called the Mississippians

4. The Iroquois – eastern woodlands (northeast)
Built longhouses
Women owned the dwellings and harvested the crops
Three “sister” crops: corn, beans, and squash
Men hunted and protected the community
Made up of five different nations:
Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Cayuga
Formed a joint gov’t called the Iroquois League
Created to end wars, was a council of representatives that met regularly to settle disputes
First experiment with democracy in North America

5. The Plains Indians – lived in the Great Plains
Consisted of different tribes
Sioux, Omaha, Comanche, Crow, and Blackfoot
Didn’t all speak the same language, so developed a form of sign language to communicate
Built teepees
Hunted buffalo with the introduction of horses from the Europeans
Used the buffalo for food, clothing, shelter, and tools

6. The Desert West
Anasazi
Developed pueblos = aboveground structures with many rooms
Also had cliff dwellings
Other peoples = Apache, the Shoshone, and the Hohokam
Used materials that were available
Great Plains Indians built teepees and the Iroquois built longhouses

9. Mesoamerica Name used for areas of Mexico and Central America
Site of the first farming settlements in the Americas
Maize, or corn, was the first domesticated crop
Olmec – first, appeared around 1200 BC
Farmed along the Gulf of Mexico, disappeared around 300 AD
Zapotec – lived in southern Mexico from 1500 BC to 750 AD
Their capital was the first true city in Mesoamerica
Toltec – lived in the highlands of Central Mexico from 900 – AD
Established military dominance over a large region

11. The Maya
One of the most advanced civilizations in the Americas
Developed around 1000 BC, built most of its cities between 300 – 900 AD
The Mayan civilization came to include much of Central America and consisted of 10 million people and 40 cities
Practiced slash-and-burn agriculture to farm the rain forest
Burning vegetation to clear the land for crops
Built splendid pyramids, temples, and palaces
Mayan cities functioned as city-states and were often at war with each other
The kings of the Mayan city-states claimed to be descended from gods

12. Had many rituals to satisfy the gods
One ritual involved piercing the tongue or skin to offer blood to the gods
Another was a game involving a rubber ball that you had to get through a stone hoop using only your elbows, knees, or hips – the losing team often were killed and their hearts sacrificed to the gods
Practiced human sacrifice to appease the gods
Among the first people to come up with the concept of zero and had a 365 day calendar
Declined due to either overuse of resources, too much warfare, or peasant rebellions

13. The Aztec
Dominate from the 1100s to the 1500s
At its height the Aztec controlled 5 million people and hundreds of cities
Forced conquered people to pay tribute, which was the basis of the Aztec economy
The capital city of Tenochtitlan was one of the largest in the world at the time, with 200,000 inhabitants
A system of roads helped with trade
The king, although he was elected by a group of nobles, claimed to be descended from gods
Religion was based on a belief in the unending struggle between forces of good and evil

14. Aztec religious ceremonies were particularly bloody
Believed that the gods needed human blood, hoped human sacrifice would postpone the day of reckoning
Aztec sacrificed as many as 20,000 victims a year – people a day
Mostly used slaves or prisoners of war as sacrifices
Warriors were responsible for capturing the victims

16. South America Chavin – 900 to 200 BC Moche – 400 BC to 600 AD
Nazca – 200 BC to 600 AD
Best known for the huge designs they made on the desert floor
These Nazca lines show geometric shapes and outlines of animals
The Inca – 1300s to 1500s
Starts out in Peru, eventually includes 12 million people
Capital at Cuzco

19. The Inca Empire was built on war
Used a system of resettlement to limit the power of local leaders they conquered
The emperor had most of the power
Believed to related to the sun god
Mummies of dead kings kept at Cuzco and worshipped
Used the quipu to keep track of the movement of goods throughout the empire
Quipu = set of colored and knotted cords
The colors and knots represented numbers or dates

20. There were no slaves in the Inca Empire, but most people belonged to the lower classes
Religion was a key element of the Inca society
People worshipped many gods, although the sun god was the most important
Priests performed ceremonies, which included sacrifices of llamas, cloth, or food
Only practiced human sacrifices on rare occasions
Built 24,800 miles worth of roads
Had rest houses a day apart
The arrival of the Spanish brought an end to the empire